


Wrath

by dormiensa



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Children, Drama, F/M, Kidnapping, Mild Language, Minor Violence, Post-Hogwarts, Suspense, Veela Draco Malfoy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-09
Updated: 2019-11-09
Packaged: 2021-01-26 11:02:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,446
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21373084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dormiensa/pseuds/dormiensa
Summary: If tickling dragons is folly, irking Veelas is madness.
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy
Comments: 6
Kudos: 128





	Wrath

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the H&V 2012 Treasured Tropes Fest.

The pain stopped as suddenly as it started. _Hermione!_

Draco gathered his thoughts and Disapparated. With each new spot not containing even the faintest scent of her, Draco grew more and more angry and frantic. Finally, his frustration reached the critical point, and he transformed into a full-fledged Veela. 

Before the rage completely overpowered him, his final thought was that he needed a friend’s help.

***

“I’m sorry to bother you when you’re nesting, My Loony Love, but a violent and squawking Malfoy bird just popped into the yard that you need to handle.”

Luna looked up from tending her brood. “Will you find me some corn kernels from the cellar, Georgeous Husband? I’ll introduce Draco to Euphenia’s latest hatchlings.” 

“You know, the way he’s always coming to you when he’s in trouble, people’d think you’re his only friend and saved him from the horrible troll in first-year or some such.”

“Basilisks will slip on ice in the winter, too. And it appreciates just as much if someone would check that it isn’t hurt and not think it weak.”

Gathering the handful of chirping downballs, Luna made her way to the yard, where, indeed, a screeching Veela was agitatedly pacing. 

Draco turned sharply when he sensed Luna’s approach, but before he could utter a sound, she held out the nest. “Say ‘hello’ to Uncle Draco.” 

The chicks began chirping cheerful greetings.

Confronted with such a spectacle, Draco suddenly—but not unexpectedly, on Luna’s part—deflated and let out a mournful wail. His normally brilliant silver feathers took on a sickly hue. Tears leaked from his eyes.

“Oh dear, something has happened to the children. And Hermione? Here, Draco, hold onto the nest. They like cuddling.”

Luna left Draco, beak resting lightly on the edge of the nest as the chicks converged on him, and went into the house to tell George to alert Harry. She then gently coaxed Draco into the house.

“The chicks don’t like travelling by Floo, Draco, but if you put them here on the coffee table, I’ll put a Bubble Charm over them. You can drop in to visit anytime.”

A moment later, Luna emerged with Draco out of the fireplace of Malfoy Manor.

They were met by one of the house-elves, who quickly disappeared. A moment later, Lucius rushed in, demanding, “What’s wrong, Draco?”

Draco could only offer a despairing moan as he burrowed his head against Lucius’ shoulder.

“Cissa! The locket!”

Narcissa arrived on the scene and cried in dismay. She quickly placed the locket at the point above Draco’s beak, between his eyes, and waited. When a fully-human Draco emerged, she gathered him in her arms and crooned, “What is it, my Dragonet? Is it Hermione? The babies?”

“Both. They’re missing. I can’t sense her. I’ve looked everywhere.”

Even the unperturbable Luna expressed her outrage with expletives—mild as they were compared those uttered by the others—although she recovered quickest and was able to inform the senior Malfoys that Harry had been alerted, preventing them from acting on their threats of violence toward the yet-unknown perpetrators.

“Draco, you had better stay here and wait for news. I am just as impatient as you to find them, but Mr. Potter and his team have the advantage of numbers and can, therefore, cover more ground. It is critical to pick up any traces quickly before they grow cold. Your father will go through his channels,”—a soft pop affirmed this—“and follow any leads from there. Now, drink this cup of hot cocoa that Woosie has prepared for you and keep calm. You are of little use to Hermione and the children when you’re transformed. You can do as much bodily harm to the perpetrators as you desire _after_ we’ve found them.”

Satisfied that Draco was obeying, Narcissa turned her attention to Luna. “Thank you so much for all your assistance, Mrs. Weasley. I am deeply in your debt.”

Luna returned the cup to its saucer before replying, “Susan once traced a case that was over two weeks old. She says the vacuum left after removing the magical traces stays intact for a month before she needs extra castings to find the starting point. And Hermione never leaves home without her extendable purse.” 

“Yes, indeed. Thank you for that reminder. Hermione has told me about Mrs. Potter’s talent; what a remarkable skill! I do hope Draco’s frantic searching hasn’t distorted the tracings... Oh good, he’s asleep. Woosie, please bring Master Draco upstairs and see that he is properly tucked in.

“More tea, Mrs. Weasley?”

***

Draco awoke, completely disoriented. Taking stock, the surroundings seemed very familiar, yet he knew he was not in his bed. Had they slept over at the Potters’ again? And why wasn’t Hermione—

At the thought of Hermione, Draco’s chest erupted in sudden pain. He recalled everything. _Mother must have put a Sleeping Draught into the cocoa! Of all the underhanded… How long have I been asleep? Hermione and the babies could be anywhere by now and wondering why I haven’t been looking._

A loud screech reverberated off the walls of the room.

In another part of the manor, Narcissa heard a faint echo of the screech and sensed the disapproving groan of the walls. The house was apparently reacting to Draco’s unaccustomed presence.

Narcissa sighed. After they found Hermione and the babies, she would need to organize a complete, top-to-bottom cleaning of the manor. It wouldn't do to upset it again, not like the last time Draco destroyed his room and enraged the house so much that they were trapped for a week! 

The wailing ceased. The house seemed to sigh in relief. Narcissa dropped everything.

When she ran into Draco’s room, she saw it in shambles and not a hint of the perpetrator. Quickly rushing to her suite, she consulted her portable tracking-pocketwatch to confirm her instincts as to whither Draco had gone, double-checked that the locket was still in her possession, and Disapparated. 

She found Draco, wings drooped and shoulders shaking, hunched over a framed picture of his little family. She cradled him to her, pressing kisses atop his feathered head, reassuring him that they would find his girls and bring them back safely. Narcissa then told him to stay put while she packed him a change of clothes, eventually managing to convince him to go back to the manor with her. 

She struck a bargain with him that she would not force another Draught on him if he agreed to take another nap. She would alert him first thing if there was any news. 

After he fell asleep, she carefully placed an immobilizing spell on him while she placed a fine chain around his neck. The pendant she placed over his heart had been fashioned from strands of hair taken from Hermione and the babies, multiplied and entwined to form a single lock. The pendant was unlikely to prevent Draco from transforming if he was angry enough, but hopefully, it would at least delay the process and give him enough time to check the anger. 

_We’ll find out soon enough… _

***

A tired Lucius had only just settled into his favourite chair with his Firewhisky when Narcissa entered the room. At his invitation, she settled into his lap.

“Cissa, Nott says he thinks he saw Rodolphus and Rabastan the other day.”

Narcissa’s lips formed a thin line as she closed her eyes. Finally, in a tight voice, “The Ministry is not going to lay hands on them first… or so help me...” 

The glint in Lucius’ eyes was all the response she needed.

“We must keep this from Draco. He has yet to be in full control of his powers when he’s in a rage.”

***

“Mrs. Weasley! How good of you to come by. He has been very difficult, but we’ve managed to stop him from transforming. You’ll find him in the library. How thoughtful of you to bring your newest hatchlings. They will entertain Draco better, I’m sure, and let him exercise his nesting instincts. It’s no wonder you’re such an excellent Creatures Specialist. I’ll have Woosie bring tea. What treats do the little ones prefer?”

“They’ve taken a liking to sunflower seeds, but corn kernels are still a favourite. They turn a misty blue whenever I give them peas, which is strange—it never happened with Euphenia. I wonder what...” Luna’s voice faded as she wandered toward the library, where she found Draco frowning over a book.

He looked up and smiled when he saw the chicks. “They’ve grown! A bigger batch than your last, isn’t it? Are you keeping them or selling to Eeylops?”

Luna handed him the nest. The chicks seemed to recognize him, even without his feathers. They chirped. 

“George says they’re the most adorable we’ve bred, so we’re giving them to the children next week when we’re at The Burrow. Do you want pets for your girls? Crookshanks will look after them until the girls are old enough. He’s very good at protecting young creatures.”

“The girls haven’t yet learned to mind the Crookmeister, for all his grumblings and disciplinarian hisses, so perhaps they can choose from a future batch?”

“Yes. They’ve really taken to you, Draco. Maybe I should leave them with you and Crookshanks to teach how to adapt to a new home. George wants to try breeding a new species of Crup that can glow in the dark to help children make their way home late at night; we haven’t found a mate for Saffiya that she’ll tolerate, though. I think I’ll ask the breeder in Chulmleigh if I can borrow a few of his dogs. I’ll come back for the chicks in two hours...”

***

“Mr. Potter, please come through. I’ll have Woosie bring some tea. If I could trouble you to speak softly, Draco has, naturally, been worried sick, and given that you haven’t brought Hermione and the babies with you...”

“Of course, Mrs. Malfoy. I really wish I _could_ have brought them with me. Susan has located the vacuum and determined that a Portkey was used, as opposed to Side-Along. And we’ve narrowed down the destination site to two areas, but it will still take a bit of time to pinpoint the exact location. I know this is not the good news you were expecting, but I felt I should give you an update instead of—”

“Potter! Have you found them? Bring me to them now!”

“We haven’t yet—”

“Draco, I thought you were busy brewing Pepper-Up for Hermione.”

“I am. But I heard the Floo. Please tell me at least, Potter, that you have found some trace of them.”

“We’ve narrowed it down to two areas and are searching them as we speak. Susan was able to reverse the vacuuming effect and identify a trace signature from a single wand. Once that signature is found, we can close in on the site more precisely.”

“And whose wand is it?”

Harry was about to answer when he caught Narcissa’s warning glance and almost imperceptible shake of her head. “I—I’m sorry, Malfoy, we haven’t yet identified the wizard… or witch who owns it.”

“Bullshit! You know! Tell me!”

“We’ve… narrowed it down to a handful of suspects, but until we find a stronger sighting, it would be premature to identify—”

“Potter, I don’t need Legilimens to know you’re shitting me. Either you tell me who it is or I swear... I… Mummy, I can’t believe you...!” Draco fell to the floor with a thump. 

“Don’t worry, Mr. Potter, it’s merely a simple Sleeping Charm I devised. He was always a bit high-strung, so on occasion, I’ve had to resort to this to get him to go to sleep at night. He’ll be out for eight hours. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll get Woosie to put him to bed.”

After the house-elf had Disapparated with the prone young master, Narcissa said, crisply, “Lucius’ investigations brought forth two names, Mr. Potter: Rodolphus and Rabastan. Tell me, is it them?”

Harry sighed. “Yes. The trace signature belongs to Rodolphus. And we’ve narrowed down the areas to West Yorkshire and the Western Highlands. They had cast Disillusionments so no one would see them in the act, but we’ve found witnesses who noticed Hermione’s brief struggle before she disappeared. And Mrs. Benwick had found a toy that one of the girls dropped when they were in her store, and she was on her way to returning the item when she saw Hermione disappear. She said that Hermione distinctly told her she still had to pick up things at Scribbulus’ and Heston’s Bakery, so there was no way she would’ve chosen to Disapparate, which we suspect is how the Lestranges wanted to make it seem to passersby.”

“Thank you for sharing the results of your investigations thus far, Mr. Potter. That you have made such progress in so short a time speaks very highly of the skill, efficiency, and dedication of your department. And you are absolutely correct to assume we would want any news you have. But I am not too overly concerned, even having learned that the Lestranges are behind the scheme—in fact, I’m rather relieved. If Antonin was still alive...” She gave a delicate shudder. “Draco has been too overwrought to appreciate the fact that his inability to sense Hermione at all means that she is alive—the bond between them is very strong, you understand—and has most likely erected a very powerful protective barrier around herself and the babies. Draco would be feeling significant pain even if she was only injured or unconscious, so never mind…

“I had placed charmed bracelets on the babies when they were born, to keep track of them. I have so far not detected any indication of harm, although their location is, at present, obscured.”

Harry let out a long sigh of relief. “When this is over, I’d love to know how to put such a charm on my son, Mrs. Malfoy. It would be a relief to be able to find him; the little devil has a habit of hiding in the most unlikely spots.”

“I would be delighted to share the spell! In fact, after Hermione’s return, I will ask her to host a small gathering so that all the children can be fitted with such charms; they need not be bracelets, of course.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Malfoy. I’ll ask Susan to spread the word. It will be a big turnout, I’m sure. If you’ll excuse me, I should head back to see if the teams have found anything. I’ll make sure to contact you in some way if there is any other news.”

***

“MOTHER!”

Narcissa found a dishevelled Draco glaring daggers at her. “What is it, darling? Why are you yelling?”

“You know very well the reason. Why have you barred me from going home?”

“What have you done with the pendant? I have already told you that you are of no use to Hermione and the babies in your Veela form. You seem to only express anger and depression in that state. And wallowing as you were when I found you, how are you supposed to find the energy to transform and inflict harm on the kidnappers if the Aurors were to notify during such an episode of despondency? It’s best that you stay here and not wander off.”

“But I—”

“You must be hungry. Come into the dining room and I’ll have Woosie fix up your favourite snack.”

“I don’t want—”

“Now, Draco, stop being difficult. You are acting like a petulant child. I thought you outgrew such antics after becoming a husband and father.”

“I’m _not_ being petulant. I am genuinely upset. And I wouldn’t need to if my family wasn’t—” his grumbling was interrupted by a wail erupting from his chest.

“Oh, Merlin’s sake...” The exasperated Narcissa secured a braid of hair—Galadriel be thanked that she’d thought to make a second, stronger “necklace”; what a clever witch Hermione was to have thought to create as simple a tool as the locket to help reverse the Veela transformation!—around the feathered neck of her irate son. 

Within moments, Draco returned to wizard form but was so incensed that he could not utter a word.

“I fashioned this and the pendant you’ve removed from the few strands of Hermione’s and the babies’ hairs I retrieved from your home. I would not try to remove this one, darling. Now, you have a choice of partaking in the meal that I’ll have Woosie prepare or taking another long nap.”

Grumbling about how his life was always controlled by meddling witches, Draco stalked into the dining room.

***

“_Rodolphus and Rabastan?!_ Did you know about their involvement? I can’t believe you kept me in the dark! How long have you known that they were responsible? _ I’m going to tear them limb from limb!_” And with that threat, Draco tugged off the braid of hair around his neck, ignored the stinging pain from the Hex, and began transforming. The frustration and anxiety that had been simmering under the surface for the past day or so no longer needed to be checked.

With a cry of alarm at the speed of his son’s transformation, Lucius grabbed the locket from Narcissa and pressed it against Draco’s forehead. Draco had already reached midpoint in his transformation. “Son, listen very carefully: you may inflict as much damage as you wish, but you must keep them alive and able to give a full confession. No poison. No vital organs. Promise me!” 

Draco’s vocal chords had already transformed, so he could only give a snarl of assent, but Lucius noted with satisfaction that there was still enough human intelligence in the eyes. He stepped back.

“Draco, Mr. Potter is gathering his team to surround the house and has given us a Portkey to the destination. In five minutes...”

***

“Well, how was I supposed to know we’d have this problem on our hands? This was _your_ brilliant idea, ’Dolph, so why don’t _you_ find a way to fix it!”

“You were supposed to disarm her as soon as you got them here! But like the bumbling idiot that you are, not only does she _still_ have her wand, she’s managed to build a barrier and hit us with hexes through it! Good thing I thought of the Portkey, else our whole plan would be for naught! Shit for brains, that’s what you have! Only Mother ever thought otherwise.” 

“Oh yeah? Well, if we’d done what _I_ suggested about Petrifying her first, ol’ Lucius would be here begging on his knees! But no, ‘she’s just a weak little woman’. Have you forgotten how much power Bella packed in that tiny body?”

“We are _not_ going to talk about Bella, you wanking louse! We’re going to break down this barrier if it kills us! Now, are you going to just stand around and—_what the_—?!”

In the space of mere seconds, Harry had broken through the wards and disarmed the brothers. He stepped aside to allow those behind him entry. Before they could take stock of what was happening, the Lestranges found themselves screaming in pain and clutching the gashes on their wand arms as a high-pitched shrill deafened them. The next moment found them flat on the floor, dazed from having their heads smashed together, the weight of the creature making them cry out again as it firmly settled on their lower torsos. 

Panting, Rodolphus was the first to realize. “A fucking Veela! Who the hell—Oh, fuck me!”

Rabastan was still in the dark. “Get the fuck off me, you overgrown vulture! You don’t know who you’re dealing with—”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake, shut up, Rab! It’s Draco! All this time, the sodding Lucius has been keeping this dirty secret from us. We could’ve trained him into a weapon as lethal as Greyba—ah, _fuck!_ You little arsemonger! I’ll get you for—” 

Whatever else Rodolphus wanted to say was drowned out by his screams of agony. Draco had only paused to allow them to recognize him. He was ready to exact his revenge. While the Lestranges were shouting their abuses, he had torn their robes to shreds. Now, he slowly began making shallow, criss-crossing cuts across every inch of their exposed flesh. He periodically banshee’d at the wounds to inflict additional pain. Mindful of his father’s warning, though, he did not unleash the unbridled fury that normally engulfed him in its raw power, making sure that while there was little blood spilled, the cuts were sufficiently deep to maximize the torment.

The Lestranges roared. Amidst the howls of rage and anguish, cries such as “’Dolph, you knobber! I’ll get you!” and “I’m never letting you in on my plans again, Rab! You always ruin it!” and “Stop! Circe’s cunt!” could occasionally be distinguished.

Finally, having taken a slight edge off his rage, Draco got to his feet. In a flash, the Lestranges were bound and vanished in a Side-Along with Lucius. 

Harry and the other Aurors bellowed. Harry quickly gave orders to have the team split into two: one to go with him to Malfoy Manor and the other to scout other potential hideaways in case his gut instincts were wrong. Two juniors were told to stay behind and keep an eye on Malfoy and make sure Hermione and the children were unharmed and brought to safety. 

Harry need not have worried. As soon as the Lestranges disappeared, the protective barrier began to melt. 

At their first sight of their father, the twins babbled in delight. Draco gurgled with happiness in return and had them in his arms in two strides. As he cuddled his fledglings close to him, he nuzzled his mate’s neck. Hermione giggled shakily and proceeded to cover his beak with light kisses, heedless of the embarrassed coughs from the ignored junior Aurors.

With a brief glance of understanding, Draco and Hermione Disapparated.

***

Draco would brook no argument. They were not going home until he had confirmation from a qualified Healer that none of them were suffering any harm from the kidnapping. Hannah fussed enough—especially over the girls—to satisfy Draco. In fact, she was so horrified at what had occurred that she insisted on Hermione’s nursing the girls at St. Mungo’s and then doing another round of diagnostics to make sure the metabolic functions of mother and daughters were in proper working order.

When they finally left St. Mungo’s, Draco brought them first to the manor to assuage Narcissa’s anxiety and ask her to remove the wards she’d put on their house to prevent Draco from Apparating home. Narcissa would not relinquish the babies, covering them with kisses, until she was forced to let Lucius, who had emerged from the dungeons to inform all of them that the Lestranges were secured, also smother them with affection. When he could spare a moment, Lucius assured Hermione that the brothers would be well enough to stand trial and receive their deserved sentencing, but the Aurors were not going to lay a hand on them until Narcissa had had a word with them as well. There were some old scores, pre-dating this situation, that needed to be settled.

***

Once they were settled comfortably at home, Hermione wasted no time in apprising Draco of what had happened, knowing he had suffered far worse than she and the girls had the entire time they were gone.

“We were on our way to Scribbulus’ when I felt someone grab me from behind and whisper ‘Mudblood’ in my ear. That was Rabastan’s first mistake. But I didn’t have enough time to escape his clutches and finish my Shield Charm when his Portkey activated and brought us to the abandoned house where you found us.

“Rabastan made his second mistake when he wasted time removing his Disillusionment before attempting to acquire my wand. I put him in a full Body Bind and your girls insisted that he stay as far away as possible and blasted him against the far wall.”—“That’s my girl!” Draco exclaimed proudly, nuzzling each of them in turn and leaving them giggling—“Well, that gave me more than enough time to build the strongest protective barrier around us. I assume Rodolphus was covering up their tracks in Diagon Alley because it was another ten minutes before he arrived. And before he could even take stock of the situation, the girls hurled him so hard against the wall that he was unconscious before he hit the floor. 

“I considered escaping with the girls while the brothers were knocked out, but I didn’t know where we were and couldn’t be sure that there were no other accomplices. Besides, I didn’t want to leave them alone inside the barrier while I investigated. So, I first grabbed the playpen from my purse and put blood wards on it to secure it. The girls were so well-behaved while I experimented with modifying the spells for the protective barrier! I wanted to see if I could not only render the occupants invisible and untouchable but also cover the surface with hexes to further deter, given that the Lestranges would know we were inside. And I wanted sight and sound to pass through only from the outside so that I could keep tabs on them. It took me a few tries, but I got it working. Then, I realized it would be even more useful to be able to send all manner of spells outward without them rebounding or affecting and cancelling out the ones already on the surface. I think Harry and his team will be pleased to add this to their arsenal. Even the Unforgivables can pass from inside the barrier.

“Having gotten it to work, I took a risk and dismantled my original barrier and put three successive ones in place, each with more complex and nasty hexes built in. 

“Well, there was nothing to do after that but to make ourselves comfortable. We managed a sing-song and a light snack before Rabastan finally came to. It’s a pity that the Body Bind only lasts three hours. And you should be proud: whatever force your girls threw at Rodolphus was strong enough to keep him unconscious for an extra two hours. Well, I put another Body Bind on Rabastan, coupled with a Confundus, and put the girls down for a nap. After that, it was biding my time with a snack of my own—thank goodness I always carry provisions!—and some relaxing reading. 

“The girls were a bit restless after their nap, so I let them move around the enclosure to stretch their muscles. Good thing I remembered in time to mark the boundaries with the powdered titan arum we use at home for out-of-bounds spots. That reminds me: did you remember to feed Crookshanks?”

“He showed up at the manor at some point, so the house-elves fed him.”

“Oh dear, that means I’ll have to add some extra fibre into his food the next few days. I really don’t understand his penchant for such rich, high-calorie foods—it’s not as if he grew up eating the stuff.”

“He was always meant to be a rich wizarding family’s cat. Who knows? Maybe his father was a pure-bred Kneazle who just happened to have fallen in love with a wandering, feisty alley cat.”

“Ha-ha. Being born with a more sensitive palate doesn’t necessarily mean you will only love expensive, fatty foods. Look at Narcissa: she has a very sensitive palate, but she tends toward the dishes that are the simplest and most delicate in flavour.”

“That is as much a result of natural preference as circumstance. When they were growing up, my mum and her sisters were trained so that they could protect one another by each specializing in one useful technique of avoiding harm and possible death. Aunt Bella naturally specialized in hexes and Aunt ’Meda Healing spells. Mum further honed her sensitive taste buds to detect even the most minute traces of poison in food and drink.” 

“In that case, I must speak to her about teaching the girls that skill when they are older.”

“No one would dare poison them! I’ll—”

“Yes, yes, Daddy, I know you’ll make sure the person responsible will require permanent residence in St. Mungo’s. Nonetheless, you can’t protect them forever. And that is a good survival skill, in any case. You know my dad enjoys camping. They would be better equipped to deal with any unfamiliar vegetation.”

“Fine. But we’re straying from the topic. What did you do after the Lestranges were released from the Body Binds? And did they ever reveal their full plan?”

“I kept putting new Body Binds on them, coupled with a different jinx or hex to prevent them from wielding magic. They wanted a huge ransom, of course, and Lucius’ help smuggling them safely out of the country and making sure they could never be found. After the ransom was delivered, they were intending to release only me and keep the babies to make further demands.”

“WHAT?!” Draco was forced to wait to demand further explanations because his exclamation had startled the twins, and he had to soothe them. He murmured pacifying words and pressed reassuring kisses into their white-blonde ringlets. Not having seen their father for what was, to them, an infinitely long period of time, they had refused to let go of him ever since they arrived home.

“Thankfully, I had them occupied enough with the Body Binds that they never even got around to sending a note to the manor. By the time the girls were ready for bed, I remembered Narcissa’s Sleeping Spell. We’re going to have to get the girls back on a routine—the windows were covered by curtains that didn’t allow any sunlight in, so their sleeping schedule has been thrown off. At first, they were too curious by the strange environment to feel tired. And I admit that I rather lost track of time myself and took naps when I could. I knew you and Harry would find us, but it would likely take more than a day, so I had to store up on rest myself. 

“They woke me up this morning with their arguing; that’s when I found out the plan in its entirety. Not a well-thought-out one, but then, I’d’ve been astounded otherwise. Apparently, Rabastan had awoken first, remembered why they were there, and charged the first barrier, suffering slug-vomiting for his pains. I was tempted to disarm them while they argued, but I worried that the bond between wizard and wand would somehow compromise the barrier—that’s something I’ll have to test… maybe tomorrow. As they continued to bicker, you arrived in all your Veela fury.”

At this point, Hermione concluded her storytelling by kissing her smirking husband.

When he could stand to pause for breath, Draco insisted that they work out a way to also allow her whereabouts to be detectable by him through the modified barrier; he could have found them sooner and caused the manor less damage.

***

By the time Lucius released the Lestrange brothers to the Aurors, they had become completely docile and subdued. Healers were brought in to thoroughly examine them, to ensure that they were fit to stand trial. To everyone’s amazement, the brothers were given a clean bill of health. No form of torture, curses, Dark magic, or Unforgivables had been used against them. They had been well-fed and any superficial injuries they had received had been tended to and allowed to heal. The only neglect that the Malfoys could be charged with was the constant denial of sunlight to the prisoners. No one seemed eager to make a fuss over that.

During their summons before the Wizengamot, the Lestranges seemed willing, even eager, to admit to all the charges laid against them. In fact, they confessed to crimes as-yet unknown to the Wizengamot or which had not previously been attributed to them. They visibly sighed in relief when it was announced that they would spend the remainder of their natural lives in Azkaban. 

Even after the Lestranges were safely locked away, Lucius and Narcissa remained tight-lipped about what had occurred in the dungeons of the manor. Narcissa only once let slip that the brothers had been isolated from each other and locked in with one Pensieve each.

The twins would stumble onto the vials containing the pertinent memories many years later, after Lucius and Narcissa had passed away and they had reached adulthood. It puzzled them to no end for years to discover that all the memories were happy ones of their own family.

**Author's Note:**

> based on unseenlibrarian’s prompt:
> 
> Veela!Draco has everything he's ever wanted: a loving mate (Hermione Granger—who knew?) and a set of beautiful nine-month-old twins. Life is good.
> 
> And then, the loves of his life vanish one day.
> 
> Were they kidnapped? Killed? Worse?
> 
> Aurors Harry and Ron are on the case, and as for DaddyVeela!Draco? The beast is unleashed, and is very, very angry.


End file.
